Extrajudicial dispute settlement by country

Legal mention picture
Legal mention picture

BELGIUM 

If the claimant has not received a response or a satisfactory response from CALI Europe, they may contact the insurance ombudsman: 

  • by post at the following address: Ombudsman Assurances - Square de Meeûs 35 - B-1000 Bruxelles 

  • or electronically via the insurance form available on the following website: www.ombudsman.as. 

However, this procedure is only available if no legal action has been initiated or taken before or during the intervention of the mediator and after the internal remedies offered by CALI Europe have been exhausted. 

In any case, the claimant shall be free to bring legal action and is not required to take the case to the persons and bodies mentioned above. 

 
FRANCE 

A claim is defined as the expression of dissatisfaction with regard to a professional, regardless of the person or department(1) to which the claim is made. It can be made by any person, including where there is no contractual relationship with the professional: customers (individuals or professionals), former customers, beneficiaries, persons having requested the provision of a product or service from the professional or having been contacted by a professional, including their agents and their heirs and assigns. 

A request for a service, information or an opinion is not a claim. 

If the claimant has not received a response or a satisfactory response from CALI Europe within 2 (two) months of sending the first written claim(2) to CALI Europe, regardless of the person or department to which the claim was made, they may refer the claim to the ombudsman of the "France Assureurs" federation (formerly known as the Fédération Française des Sociétés d'Assurance), namely the "La Médiation de l'assurance" association:

  • By post at the following address: La Médiation de l’assurance  - TSA 50110 - 75441 Paris Cedex 9. 

However, this procedure is only available if no legal action has been initiated or taken before or during the intervention of the mediator and after the internal remedies offered by the Insurer have been exhausted. 
The mediation procedure is free of charge, confidential and impartial. 

All claims falling within the competences of the French supervisory authority, ACPR, may also be brought to its attention: 

To facilitate the processing of your request, please consider preparing the information and documents that you wish to bring to our attention: 

  • Your question or summary of the facts that you wish to bring to the attention of ACPR 

  • A copy of the policies concerned and the exchange of letters with CALI Europe or your intermediary 

  • Any documents you consider relevant 

In any case, the claimant shall be free to bring legal action and is not required to take the case to the persons and bodies mentioned above. 

(1)Including a delegated provider or agent of the professional (insurance agent, payment services provider agent, electronic money distributor, etc.).

(2)With the postmark constituting proof.

 
ITALY 

If the claimant has not received a response or a satisfactory response from CALI Europe within a maximum of forty-five (45) days, they may contact the following authorities: 

1.IVASS (Insurance Supervision Authority) 

  • By post at the following address: Consumer Protection Service - Via del Quirinale 21  - 00187 Rome - Fax: (+39) 06 42133745 

  • or by telephone on (+ 39) 06 42133353 

The authority is competent for all matters concerning policy management. 

Claims submitted to IVASS should contain at least the following information: 

  • name, surname and address of the claimant together with his or her telephone number; 

  • identity of the party or parties against whom the claim is made; 

  • brief and exhaustive description of the reason for the claim; 

  • copy of the claim submitted to the insurance company; 

  • any relevant documents giving a more detailed description of the situation. 

2. CONSOB (Italian Enterprise and Stock Market Commission) 

  • by post at the following address: Consumer Protection Division - Consumer Protection Service - Via G.B. Martini 3 - 00198 Rome - Fax: (+39) 068416703 

The Commission is competent in all matters relating to transparency of relevant information regarding unit-linked life insurance and indexed commodities or capital redemption operations. Documents relating to the claim being dealt with by CALI Europe should be attached to the report. 

The claimant may send a written complaint to the Luxembourg-based insurance supervisory authority, the Commissariat aux Assurances (CAA), by post to 11 rue Robert Stumper, L-2557 Luxembourg, or by fax to + 352 226910 or by e-mail to caa@caa.lu available at www.caa.lu, enclosing the documents relating to the claim processed by CALIE.

Financial dispute arbitrator 
CONSOB created the position of Financial Dispute Arbitrator (ACF) via Resolution No 19602 of 4 May 2016. It is an extrajudicial dispute resolution mechanism between investors/contractors and intermediaries, relating to violations by intermediaries of their due diligence, fairness, disclosure and transparency obligations towards investors/contractors (including cross-border disputes and disputes covered by Regulation (EU) No 524/2013) for insurance-based investment products involving cash sums not exceeding €500,000.00. 
The claimant is entitled to bring their case to the Arbitrator if the intermediary has not provided a satisfactory response or has not responded within sixty (60) days after the submission of the claim. 
Cases must be referred to the Arbitrator in the year after submitting the claim to the intermediary. The service is completely free of charge. 
To find out how to contact the Arbitrator and how to submit your case, please consult the following website: https://www.acf.consob.it, or contact CALI Europe. 

Other alternative dispute resolution systems 
The claimant can use other dispute resolution systems, including: 
compulsory mediation provided for in Decree-Law No 28 of 4 March 2010: this is an alternative dispute resolution system that can be used by the claimant with the assistance of a lawyer, by submitting an application to a mediation body listed in a register kept by the Ministry of Justice, which can be found on the following website: www.ministerodellagiustizia.it. 
assisted negotiation provided for in Act No 162/2014: this is an amicable dispute resolution procedure that can be initiated by the claimant with the assistance of a lawyer in order to come to an agreement (“negotiation agreement”). 

Court action 
The claimant retains the right to take legal action after having gone through the compulsory mediation procedure, in accordance with Decree-Law No 28 of 4 March 2010, to settle any insurance-related dispute. 

 
Cross-border disputes
For any cross-border dispute, claimants based in Italy may file a claim to IVASS or directly to the competent system abroad, by requesting activation of the FIN-NET procedure via the website of the European Commission. 

 
LUXEMBOURG 

If the claimant has not received a response or a satisfactory response from CALI Europe, they may contact the Luxembourg ombudsman. 
The Luxembourg insurance ombudsman is a body managed jointly by ACA and ULC: 

  • ACA – Association of Insurance Companies: BP 448, L-2014 Luxembourg; 

  • ULC – Luxembourg Consumer Union: 55, rue des Bruyères, L-1274 Howald. 

However, this procedure is only available if no legal action has been initiated or taken before or during the intervention of the mediator and after the internal remedies offered by the Insurer have been exhausted. 
In any case, the claimant shall be free to bring legal action and is not required to take the case to the persons and bodies mentioned above. 

 
MONACO 

If the claimant has not received a response or a satisfactory response from CALI Europe, they may contact the Luxembourg ombudsman. 
The Luxembourg insurance ombudsman is a body managed jointly by ACA and ULC: 

  • ACA – Association of Insurance Companies: BP 448, L-2014 Luxembourg; 

  • ULC – Luxembourg Consumer Union: 55, rue des Bruyères, L-1274 Howald. 

However, this procedure is only available if no legal action has been initiated or taken before or during the intervention of the mediator and after the internal remedies offered by the Insurer have been exhausted. 
In any case, the claimant shall be free to bring legal action and is not required to take the case to the persons and bodies mentioned above. 

 

SPAIN 

If the claimant has not received a response or a satisfactory response from CALI Europe, they may contact the Claims service at the General Directorate of Insurance and Pension Funds at Paseo de la Castellana 44, 28046 Madrid. 

In any case, the claimant shall be free to bring legal action and is not required to take the case to the body mentioned above.